A trio of U.S. women’s singles figure skaters are single-handedly revolutionizing how the world views female athletes and women’s mental health. 

Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito approached the 2026 Winter Olympics, held in Milan, Italy, with the gold in their peripheral vision and their mindset as the central mission. Not perfection, not punishment, but mindset. 

Liu said it best: “I think my story is pretty cool.”

And it is. After famously retiring at 16 from skating via a social media caption beginning with, “heyyyyy,” she decided she wanted to return to the ice, but on terms all of her own at 20. 

She didn’t do this because she had to or because someone told her to, but because she wanted to. 

“I love struggling, actually,” Liu said in an interview with 60 Minutes. “It makes me feel alive.”

That’s not always something you hear from elite athletes, especially not women who have been raised in systems that quietly reward self-destruction in the name of medals. 

This can be attributed to the way Liu learned to protect herself. Physically, she’s pacing her training and listening to her body; mentally, she’s setting boundaries, embracing the struggle and refusing to let perfection define her worth. 

Liu continues to decide her own story now, wearing what she wants, eating what she wants, skating how she wants and creating programs that she loves. She took control of her own life, and that power translated onto Olympic ice. 

Her terms won her two Olympic gold medals, but more importantly, they won her peace. 

Glenn and Levito had similar approaches to the competition, with the trio’s friendship remaining a guiding light throughout the process.

Was there discipline? Absolutely. But there was also laughter, genuine smiles, a few tears and a visible friendship that felt grounding rather than competitive. 

Glenn, the oldest of the bunch at 26, addressed the online vitriol the trio has been receiving throughout the games. 

“I really hope that going forward we can find a way to support athletes, especially when it comes to online spaces,” she said in an interview with Reuters. “There have been really disturbing things said online about the three of us as female athletes.”

In 2026, the triple axel might be difficult, but surviving the comment section on TikTok can be utterly brutal. Her ability to stand up for herself and her teammates display why protecting themselves mentally has become just as critical as landing a clean program. 

Even amid that noise, 18-year-old Levito has carried herself through the Olympic Village with a  refreshing lightness you can’t help but smile at. 

“I don’t think there’s anything not to enjoy,” Levito told US Weekly. “I feel like I’m exactly where I want to be, and I’m so glad that things have aligned and worked out for me to be here.” 

Their approach to the competition, rooted in joy rather than pure, fierce competitiveness did not distract from their greatness. If anything, it fueled it. 

It is so unbelievably refreshing to see young women competing on a stage of that magnitude, with an unparalleled amount of skill, and for them to not look hollowed out by the process. They weren’t brittle or visibly unraveling under the pressure.

They weren’t miserable. They were having fun.

Burnt-out perfectionists like myself (the ones who sometimes believe suffering is the admission price for achievement) could learn a lot from this trio of women. 

In life and in a world filled with so much darkness, we have grown accustomed to treating misery like a prerequisite for success. Like if it isn’t a brutal process to get there, then accomplishments don’t count. 

Likewise in the athletic space, we are used to hearing the horror stories of high-level sports training and have just grown to believe that all-consuming pain is part of the process. 

These figure skaters are proving that is not true. 

They are showing self-sacrificing overachievers everywhere something radical: You can protect your peace and still win. 

You can say no, take a break or step away for a prolonged period of time and come back stronger, even if what you’re chasing isn’t an Olympic medal. 

These women are showing on one of the world’s biggest stages that we are the one thing in life we can control. Everything else we chase, build or work toward can in fact be shaped around that fact.

The Blade Angels are proving that joy and excellence are not repellent of each other. In fact, like these women, they are partners. 

Their skating is impeccable, and they’ve mastered their edges on the ice. 

However, their moves to redefine the razor’s edge women are expected to balance on may be their boldest spin yet. 

Kaitlyn Fleming can be contacted at fleming115@marshall.edu.